Last updated 8/24/2011 12:30:00 PM

Course Outline and Readings

Note: Full syllabus available on eLearning Course Information Course Number/Section Course Title Term Days & Times Location

ECON 4334 Experimental Economics Fall 2011 Monday & Wednesday: 1:00pm-2:15pm SOM 2.102 Teaching Assistant Contact Information: Teaching assistant: Haley Harwell Email: Office Hours and location:

Professor Contact Information Professor: Catherine C. Eckel Office Phone: 972-883-4949 Email Address: eckelc@utdallas.edu Office Location: GR 2.810 Office Hour: tba

Course Pre-requisites, Co-requisites, and/or Other Restrictions ECO(ECON) 3310, Intermediate Microeconomic Theory, or instructors permission. You will need to conduct simple statistical analysis of data, requiring at least an introductory level statistics course. Game theory is desired, but not required. Course Description This course provides an introduction to experimental methods in economics. In your other economics courses you have learned about economic theories. In this class we will test those theories. Either we will be able to confirm the theories or we will find evidence that the theories are incorrect, usually because they are based on a questionable assumption. Students will also become familiar with state-of-the-art research methodology in experimental economics, and will learn to conduct their own research projects by participating in and designing experiments in bargaining, auction markets, and other economic situations. Student Learning Objectives/Outcomes Upon completing this course the student should be able to: 1. Identify and understand the elements of experimental design 2. Analyze and critique an experimental design 3. Design and conduct an experiment 4. Analyze and present experimental data Required Textbooks and Materials Required Texts: Friedman, Daniel and Shyam Sunder, Experimental Economics: A Primer for Economists Cambridge University Press, 1994. Holt, Charles, Markets, Games and Strategic Behavior. Pearson Addison Wesley, 2006. Required Materials Additional articles will be assigned and available on eLearning. Suggested Course Materials Suggested Readings/Texts Standard texts from Principles of Economics and Intermediate Microeconomics to help with homework.

Course Syllabus

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Last updated 8/24/2011 12:30:00 PM Assignments & Academic Calendar Students will complete weekly homework assignments individually or in teams. In addition, groups will be assigned, and each group will conduct an experiment in class, collect the data, and present the results to the rest of the class. There will be two midterm exams and a cumulative final exam. If you have a grade of A or B after the midterms, you may elect to substitute a research paper (this can be a formal writeup and extension of your experimental presentation, complete with a brief review of related research, or a separate survey of a set of experiments) for the final exam. Topics, Reading Assignments, Due Dates, Exam Dates (subject to change with reasonable notice)

Week 1 2-3 3-4 4 5 6

Date 8/24 8/29, 31, 9/7 9/ 12, 14 9/19, 21 9/26, 28 10/3 10/5 10/10 10/12 10/17, 19 10/24, 26 10/31, 11/2 11/7 11/9 11/14, 16 11/21, 23, 28, 30 12/6 12/9

Topic Market experiment Intro to experimental methods Matrix Games: cooperation and coordination Risk and time preferences, Prospect Theory, and Insurance Ultimatum, Dictator, Trust First Midterm Exam; Project work Project work Field experiments (panel discussion) Mixed Strategies (guest speaker) Price Bubbles Public Goods Voting and information markets Review and project work Second Midterm Exam Industrial Organization experiments Group experiments and presentations Review, assessment, etc. Final exam 11:00a.m. Friday, December 9

Reading Assignment F&S 1, 2, 3, 9 Holt 1; Holt 2 Holt 3, 26 Holt 4, 28 Holt 12, 13 All assigned chapters F&S 4, 6, 7 Readings tba Holt 24 Holt 11 Holt 14 Holt 18, 34 Assigned chapters Selected from Holt 6, 8, 10 Readings tba Readings tba

7 8 9 10 11 12 13-14 15 16

Outline may be modified in the event of unforeseen circumstances. Grading Policy Grades will be calculated as follows: Homework: 20% Group Project 25% Exam 1: 15% Exam 2: 15% Final exam: 25%

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Last updated 8/24/2011 12:30:00 PM Group Projects 1. In late September, we will divide up into groups for your group project. Each group will be responsible for conducting one experiment. More detailed instructions to come 2. There are a number of parts to this project. They are: 1) Conduct the in class experiment. Your group will conduct the entire experiment. You will have to prepare instructions and log sheets, collect any materials needed for the experiment, explain the instructions to the class, run the experiment, keep records, etc. I expect you to meet with me at least 48 hours before your scheduled experiment to make sure you are on track, read over your instructions and log sheets and go over any problems you are having. Part of your experimental design is to plan how the payment scheme will work. (More on this later). 2) Prepare and grade a homework assignment. You will need to determine a reading assignment from the book and write several homework questions for your classmates to answer. I need to approve all homework assignments in advance. After the assignments are turned in you will have a week to give your classmates feedback, assign grades (mean grade is an 8.5), and write solutions to the homework that you will give me as a Word or PDF file so that I can post it on Web CT. 3) Discuss the experiment in class. This includes presenting summary tables and graphs, calculating useful statistics, performing statistical tests (if any), explaining any relevant theory, comparing the experiments to others we have done in class and discussing the conclusions you draw from the experiment. 4) Experiment write-up. These will be due two weeks after the experiment is completed. Write-ups will include copies instructions, slides used in the presentation, and a critique of your experiment. (What went well, what went poorly, how you would change things if you had them to do over.) Write-ups should be no less than 3 pages long, in addition to instructions and slides. Course Policies Make-up exams: No make up exams will be given. If you miss an exam with a valid excuse given BEFORE the exam, then your grade will be recalculated. If you miss one exam, the second midterm will be 25% and the final 30%. If you miss two, the final will be worth 55% of your grade. Experience shows that people who miss exams do worse overall in the course than those who take the exams, so dont miss them! Check your schedule now to be sure you can make it. Homework:You will work on your homework in groups. However, each person should write up their answers to the questions separately. This is an important part of the course! Extra Credit: Occasional extra credit assignments will be announced. Late Work: 1 day late: 10% deduction; 2 days late, 20% deduction; 3 days late 30% deduction. Special Assignments: There are no special assignments. Class Attendance: It is a good idea to attend every class. If you miss an experiment you will have a lot of trouble doing the homework and participating in the discussion. Classroom Citizenship: Participation is strongly encouraged. Additional information about university policies: The information in the link below constitutes the University's policies and procedures segment of course syllabi. Please refer to it and read it carefully. http://go.utdallas.edu/syllabus-policies

Course Syllabus

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Last updated 8/24/2011 12:30:00 PM

Course Syllabus

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